The Last Confederate Reunion, 1944 photo

Yep.
I'm obviously much older than you, but my Mom remembered those old guys as well.

She was born in 1927, and remembered those Civil War Veterans showing her "attention" when she was about six years old.
( Bouncing her on their knee, singing to her) and doing the normal innocent stuff that was once acceptable.

I think there may be a 1930's photo of my Mother and an old Confederate Vet together somewhere.
I'll try to find it and post.
Was she born in Tylertown?
 
I'm certain my father knew many CW veterans, but I'm not sure it ever occurred to him to think of them as veterans. I imagine they were just old gents he knew when he was a boy. His own father actually remembered a few incidents of the war, but he was very young when they happened. This will all seem improbable to many readers, but it's true. My grandfather was born in 1857. The young man in my avatar is believed to be my grandfather's much older brother (born in 1841.) My father was born in 1906. There were still lots of old veterans around here (central Missouri) when he was a kid--similar to the WWI and WWII veterans I knew as I was growing up.
 
I'm certain my father knew many CW veterans, but I'm not sure it ever occurred to him to think of them as veterans. I imagine they were just old gents he knew when he was a boy. His own father actually remembered a few incidents of the war, but he was very young when they happened. This will all seem improbable to many readers, but it's true. My grandfather was born in 1857. The young man in my avatar is believed to be my grandfather's much older brother (born in 1841.) My father was born in 1906. There were still lots of old veterans around here (central Missouri) when he was a kid--similar to the WWI and WWII veterans I knew as I was growing up.
Same here.

I had many WW II relatives and friends of the family that were still going strong during the 1970s.
But there were a few much older men that had been in France during WWI.

The fellow that I will never forget, was one of my Great Uncles.
He had experienced a poison gas attack during 1918.
He also had PTSD into the early 1970s when he himself was in his 80s.

( back in that era, the medical community still referred to his condition as "shell shocked" ).
They were not wrong.

Actually, all of us kids were somewhat afraid of him ... he never talked to anyone, and spent all day sitting in his wheel chair, while staring at his farm fields from the "back porch".

These same issues haunted many Civil War Veterans.
 
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The last Civil War veteran died in 1959. They show a film clip of it at the beginning of the first episode of the Ken Burns documentary. But James Longstreet's second wife, Helen Dortch, died in 1962, surviving him by 58 years.
 
When I was a young kid in the 1950's, the small town I grew up in, had an old guy, that claimed to be a CW veteran, but it was well known that he was not (not even born, according to my father). In fact, though he was of the right age, it was doubted that he even served in the Spanish American War.

All veterans were held in very high regard, in that era. We actually had the town honor roll in our front yard and I recall marveling at our veterans and the wards they fought in. We had a town cemetery and I recall as a Boy Scout how we cut brush and cleaned. Cemetery was on a hill, with the oldest graves way up on the hill. That was where we had a few CW veterans buried and it was also the part of the cemetery that had lessening care through the years. The town I live in now, also has a town cemetery and there is a GAR circle in the center, with two Columbiads guarding.
Fitzhugh Lee, Joseph Wheeler and Thomas Rosser served in the Spanish-American War. Wheeler was made a major general of volunteers and commanded the cavalry division on the Santiago expedition and took part in the battle of San Juan Hill. Then was sent to the Philippines in command of a brigade and returned to the US in 1900 as a brigadier of the regular army.
 
when I was yond back in 1950, us kids girls included used to visit a very elderly gentleman who lived in our town. and he used to tell us about his father who fought in the CW. he had his fathers weapon & uniform, as I remember some parts of it was tarred, as I remember, hat maybe, don't know why? and he would tell us about the artillery firing length's of RR, rail & and 3 foot sections of iron chain, into the horse Calvary & men. and his father told him that he had seen men strangled with the horses intestines'! boy that sure scared hearing that. was them items fired as he told us? we all called him GRANDPA CHASE.
 
I also had the honor of talking to a SPAN AM, WAR veteran in my town, his name was CHARLES BURDICK, in about 1956. so he was about 78? and I would sit and listen to his exploits for hours with a great respect for what he told me. he was not married, and he was a house painter. even at that advanced age, he was painting on a ladder when he was stricken and fell off of it and died. I don't know if there was any retirement back then? and as a young lad back then I felt so sad for loosing a great friend.
 
Fitzhugh Lee, Joseph Wheeler and Thomas Rosser served in the Spanish-American War. Wheeler was made a major general of volunteers and commanded the cavalry division on the Santiago expedition and took part in the battle of San Juan Hill. Then was sent to the Philippines in command of a brigade and returned to the US in 1900 as a brigadier of the regular army.
Somewhat related is the highest ranking officer killed in WW2, Lt Gn Simon Buckner Jr., the son of CSA Lt General Simon Buckner.
 
Thank you, @ucvrelics! The blog you referenced is excellent. That explains two things for me. The “Generals” pictured here are probably addressed as such, as a matter of respect. And the “Dr.” prefacing Gwynne would of course be a ministerial term.
So glad you are in my state, armed with a storehouse of CW knowledge!
Many if not all of their ranks originated as officers within the United Confederate Veterans organization to which likely all of them belonged. By the time this reunion occurred they were probably the last remaining members of their various Camps; therefore by default they would be the "commanders" of their local groups with commensurate ranks.
 
Drummer boy John Clem of the 12th Michigan who was just ten years old at the battle of Shiloh, remained in the army all his active life and retired as a major general shortly before the First World War.
https://civilwartalk.com/threads/johnny-clem-the-drummer-boy-of-chickamauga.180078/

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I also had the honor of talking to a SPAN AM, WAR veteran in my town,
Yeah, it was fascinating to listen to those men.

In addition to the older guys in my family that were WW I Veterans during the 1970s, I was also fortunate to know a WWI Veteran that had served in Kaiser Wilhelm's Imperial Germany Army.

(One of our neighbors were second generation German, and their Grandfather would visit every Summer).

Although he never talked about the "Great War" ... he loved kids & taught all of us some very good strategy about playing chess.

And while he spoke better English than all of us, I can still hear his German accent.
:smile:
 
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